Photo album page

ABSTRACT

A photograph album page is made of precut sheets of a transparent flexible film material which are sealed to and over the faces of an opaque flexible backing sheet so as to form thereupon photo-protective sleeves extending between slits formed along opposite margins of the transparent sheets. The sheets are made of thermoplastic resin materials and are heat-sealed together along their edges and along the bottom border and partly along the top border of each sleeve portion. Each sleeve thus has a side opening and open ends for easy insertion and removal of photographs which fit under and are viewed through the sleeve. cutaway portions of the transparent sheets along the sleeve portions expose matte areas of the backing which are receptive to photo-identifying pen or pencil markings.

1 51 Mar. 28, 1972 [54] PHOTO ALBUM PAGE [72] Inventor: John B. Woodyard, New Providence, NJ.

[73] Assignee: The C. R. Gibson Company, Norwalk,

Conn.

[22] Filed: Oct. 20, 1970 [21] Appl.No.: 82,372

[52] US. Cl ..40/l04.19, 40/159 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,134,991 12/1956 France ..40/159 1,536,637 l/1970 Germany ..40/104.18

1,807,964 5/1970 Germany ..40/159 1,038,621 8/1966 GreatBritain ..40/l04.l9

Primary Examiner-Robert W. Michell Assistant Examiner-J. H. Wolff AttorneyAlbert C. Johnston [5 7] ABSTRACT A photograph album page is made of precut sheets of a transparent flexible film material which are sealed to and over the faces of an opaque flexible backing sheet so as to form thereupon photo-protective sleeves extending between slits formed along opposite margins of the transparent sheets. The sheets are made of thermoplastic resin materials and are heat-sealed together along their edges and along the bottom border and partly along the top border of each sleeve portion. Each sleeve thus has a side opening and open ends for easy insertion and removal of photographs which fit under and are viewed through the sleeve. cutaway portions of the transparent sheets along the sleeve portions expose matte areas of the backing which are receptive to photo-identifying pen or pencil markings.

8 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures Patented March 28, 1972 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I I... "I, "n" III Q QR INVENTOR. Jaw B. Wow/4R0 iii/4.9 I'TUH/Vfy Patented March 28, 1972 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG.3

INVENTOR. JOHN B. n ooomeo ATTOR/VL'Y PHOTO ALBUM PAGE The present invention relates to photograph albums and more particularly to a novel construction of the pages for such an album.

One known album page construction consists of a thin cardboard sheet having glued thereto elongated transparent strips or sleeves that form pockets to receive photographs. in another known construction a laminated backing sheet has a latex coating to hold photographs placed on its surface and to hold in place a transparent sheet of a synthetic resin film material that is layed over the photographs.

Each of those known constructions leaves much to be desired in one or more important respects, such as the ease of inserting or removing individual photographs, the protection given to the photographs, the facility of identifying them by simple pen or pencil markings, or the complexity and cost of manufacturing the album page.

It is an object of the invention to provide a page structure for a photograph album which protects photographs from curling, dirt or other harm, holds them for convenient viewing without need for displacement, yet enables them to be individually inserted into or removed from the page structure as and when so desired.

Another object of the invention is to provide an album page which provides photo-identifying areas close to the photographs held therein, each of which areas is receptive to markings by pen or pencil.

A further object of the invention is to provide a photograph album page of relatively simple construction, and which can be produced by automatic machinery at relatively low cost.

In accordance with the present invention, two sheets of a transparent flexible film material are suitably precut and sealed to the opposite faces of an opaque flexible backing sheet so as to form a laminar page structure that fulfills the objects above stated.

Each transparent sheet has pairs of slits formed therethrough at locations spaced apart along one dimension of the page structure, with the slits of each pair lying opposite each other so as to define between them an elongate sleeve portion of the transparent sheet, having a width greater than the height of the photographs that are to be placed in the album page. Marginal portions of the transparent sheet lying outside the slit portions, as well as one longitudinal border and part of the other longitudinal border of each sleeve portion, are united with the backing sheet by seal means which advantageously are heat-seal lines along which the sheets are fused together. A length of said other longitudinal border and the ends of each sleeve portion lie free of the backing sheet, so as to form a side opening and opposite end openings through any of which photographs may be slid into and out of the space, or pocket, formed between each sleeve portion and the backing sheet.

Further, each transparent sheet has elongate portions thereof cut away from it along a longitudinal border of each sleeve portion, so as to provide therealong an exposed area of the backing sheet that is receptive to pen pencil markings for the identification of photographs held in the pockets.

The above mentioned and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying illustrative drawings of a preferred embodiment thereof. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an album page constructed according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged transverse sectional view of a portion of the page structure, taken approximately along line 22 of FIG. 1; and

F IG. 3 is an exploded view of the component sheets in their form existing before they are sandwiched and sealed together.

As shown in the drawings, the album page has a three-ply sandwiched construction composed of a precut first sheet 11 of a transparent flexible film material, a backing sheet 12 of opaque flexible sheet material, and a precut third sheet 13 of a transparent flexible film material. The transparent sheets 11 and 13 are fixed to opposite faces of the backing sheet 12. Preferably the backing sheet is of material having a matte finish. Each of the three sheets may be composed of a flexible synthetic resin, which preferably is a thermoplastic elastomer, such as a suitable polyvinyl chloride resin, so that the sheets may be joined together easily by fusion of their contacting surfaces under heat and pressure in required regions of the page structure.

The transparent sheets may each be, for example, a piece of vinyl sheeting of a grade known as Picture Clear H5, having a thickness of about 0.004 inch, and'the opaque sheet may be, for example, a thicker piece of vinyl sheeting of a grade known as White Matte H6, having a thickness of about 0.006 inch.

The laminar page structure 10 is made conveniently with a height of, for example, about 13 b inches and a width of, for example, about 14 as inches. Along one of its side margins this structure may be formed with sets of holes 14, 15 to receive fasteners for retaining it in a photograph album. These holes may be reenforced by surrounding heat-sealed areas, in-

dicated at 14a in FIG. 1.

The two transparent sheets 11 and 13 are formed alike, for example, by cutting them from transparent polyvinyl chloride film material with the use of steel rule dies mounted in a hydraulic press. They are sealed to opposite sides of the backing sheet 12 along common seal lines (areas), preferably by use of high frequency heat sealing equipment. Accordingly, the side of the page structure formed by the sealing of sheet 11 to the backing 12, as shown in FIG. 1, corresponds in form and functions, as substantially a mirror image, tothe opposite side of the album page as formed by the sealing of sheet 13 to the other face of the same backing sheet.

The seal lines or areas which join the transparent sheets to the backing sheet 12 in the embodiment shown include a seal line 20 extending about and along all the edges of the page structure, a creased vertical seal line 23 extending along the left-hand margin thereof (as seen in FIG. 1) between the holes 14 and 15, which provides a fold line for doubling that margin upon itself when binding it in an album, and several creased vertical seal lines 24 to 28 near the left-hand margin, any one of which may constitute a hinge line for turning the body of the page structure relative to a marginal portion thereof bound in an album.

Each of thetransparent sheets 11 and 13 has pairs of slits 29, 30, 31, 32 and 33,34 which are precut therethrough at iocations'spaced apart along one dimension, preferably the vertical dimension, of the page structure. The slits of each pair lie opposite each other at and along opposite side margins of the structure, so as to define between them, i.e., between slits 29 and 30 and similarly between slits 31 and 32 and between slits 33 and'34, elongate sleeve portions 35, 36 and 37 of each transparent sheet 11 or 13. Each of these sleeve portions has a width, or vertical dimension as viewed in FIG. 1, a little greater than a standard height (about 3 k inches) of photographs which are to be placed in the album page.

Since the seal lines 20 and 28 lie outside the locations of the slits, they leave the main body of each transparent sheet, including the sleeve portions thereof, lying. free upon the backing sheet 12. The sleeve portions, however, are formed into separate photo-protective pockets on the backing by additional seal means provided along their longitudinal borders. These additional seal means include seal lines 38 and 39 and part 20a of seal line 20, which unite the lower longitudinal borders of sleeve portions 35, 36 and 37 with the backing sheet, and sets of shorter seal lines 40, 41, 42, 43, and 44,45, which unite parts of the upper longitudinal borders of the sleeve portions with the backing sheet.

The shorter seal lines of each set, such as lines 40 and 41, are spaced apart so that they leave between their ends a free length of the upper longitudinal border of the related sleeve portion, which is unsealed so thatit lies free of the backing sheet. These unsealed, or free, border portions as shown at 46, 47 and 48 are centrally disposed along the upper edges of the respective sleeve portions 35, 36 and 37. They provide for each sleeve portion, in this embodiment along the top thereof, a side opening through which individual photographs may be readily slid into the space between the sleeve portion and the backing sheet, while the free ends of the sleeve portion as formed by the related slits, such as at the slits 29 and 30, provide end openings through which individual photographs may be readily slid into the same space.

Each of the transparent sheets is also formed with elongate portions thereof cut away therefrom at areas 50, 51 and 52 disposed along longitudinal borders of the sleeve portions. As shown, these cutaway areas span and extend beyond the ends of the side openings provided by the free upper edge portions 46, 47 and 48 of the sleeves. Thus, they expose along the sleeve portions elongate areas 50a, 51a and 52a of the surface of the backing sheet, which, being a matte surface, makes these areas receptive to markings by pen or pencil for convenient identification of the photographs placed in the pockets formed by the adjacent sleeve portions.

The manner of assembly of precut transparent sheets 1 l and 13 with a backing sheet 12 in order to form a sandwich for the heat sealing operation is indicated schematically by the exploded view of the three sheets in FIG. 3. When sheets of the form seen in this view have been sandwiched and sealed together as above described, an edge strip 60 of the sealed assembly, as indicated by broken lines in FIG. 1, will lie outside the seal line 20 that units the sheets along the edges of the desired page structure. The heat-seal line 20 may be formed conveniently as a tear-seal edge, enabling the edge strip 60 to be easily torn off and discarded so that a neatly finished album page remains with its peripheral edge defined by the outer edge of seal line 20.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to details of the illustrated embodiment and that various modifications may be effected therein without departing from the fair scope of the invention, which is intended to be defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An album page comprising a flexible backing of opaque sheet material and a transparent sheet of flexible film material overlying and adhered to a face of said backing to form a laminar page structure,

said transparent sheet having pairs of slits therethrough at locations spaced apart along one dimension of said structure,

the slits of each of said pairs lying opposite each other at and along opposite side margins of said structure so as to define between such slits an elongate sleeve portion of said transparent sheet, each said sleeve portion having a width greater than the height of photographs to be placed in the album page,

seal means uniting with said backing the portions of said transparent sheet that occupy said side margins, one longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion and part of the other longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion,

a length of said other longitudinal border and the ends of each said sleeve portion at said slits lying free of said backing to form, respectively, a side opening and opposite end openings through which photographs may be slid into and out of the space between each said sleeve portion and said backing.

2. An album page according to claim 1,

said transparent sheet having a plurality of elongate portions thereof cut away therefrom, one of said cut-away portions being adjacent to and border of each said sleeve portion to provide therealong an elongate exposed area of the surface of said backing receptive to pen or pencil markings.

3. An album page according to claim 1,

said transparent sheet having an elongate portion thereof cut away therefrom at and along, and at least coextensive with, said free length of said other longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion, so as to provide along the latter an elongate exposed area of the surface of said backing. 4. An album page according to claim 3, each said cut-away portion spanning and extending beyond the ends of the side openings of the related sleeve portion.

5. An album page according to claim 1, said backing having another transparent sheet of flexible film material overlying and adhered to the other face thereof, said other transparent sheet having in substantially the same manner as the aforesaid sheet pairs of slits therethrough and portions thereof united with said backing by seal means so as to form sleeve portions having side and opposite end openings as aforesaid, said seal means of the two transparent sheets being at common locations in the plane of said backing.

6. An album page according to claim 1, said transparent sheet each being composed of a sheeted thermoplastic resin material and said seal means comprising seal lines along which said transparent sheet and said backing are fused together.

7. An album page according to claim 1, further comprising holes formed through one of said side margins of said structure to receive fasteners for holding the page in an album.

8. An album page comprising a flexible backing composed of a sheeted thermoplastic resin material and a transparent sheet of thermoplastic resin film material covering and adhered to each of the faces of said backing to form a laminar page structure,

each said sheet having pairs of slits therethrough at locations spaced apart along one dimension of said structure,

the slits of each of said pairs lying opposite each other at and along opposite side margins of said structure so as to define between such slits an elongate sleeve portion of the related transparent sheet, each said sleeve portion having a width greater than the height of photographs to be placed in the album page.

seal means uniting with said backing the portions of each said sheet that occupy said side margins, one longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion and part of the other longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion, said seal means being seal lines along which said transparent sheets and said backing are fused together at common locations in the plane of said backing,

a length of said other longitudinal border and the ends of each said sleeve portion lying free of said backing so as to form, respectively, a side opening and opposite end openings through which photographs may be slid into and out of the space between each said sleeve portion and said backing,

each said sheet having an elongate portion thereof cut away therefrom at and along said other longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion so as to provide along the latter an elongate exposed area of the surface of said backing that spans and extends beyond the ends of said side opening of the related sleeve portion, said exposed area being receptive to pen or pencil markings.

along a longitudinal said backing and 

1. An album page comprising a flexible backing of opaque sheet material and a transparent sheet of flexible film materiAl overlying and adhered to a face of said backing to form a laminar page structure, said transparent sheet having pairs of slits therethrough at locations spaced apart along one dimension of said structure, the slits of each of said pairs lying opposite each other at and along opposite side margins of said structure so as to define between such slits an elongate sleeve portion of said transparent sheet, each said sleeve portion having a width greater than the height of photographs to be placed in the album page, seal means uniting with said backing the portions of said transparent sheet that occupy said side margins, one longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion and part of the other longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion, a length of said other longitudinal border and the ends of each said sleeve portion at said slits lying free of said backing to form, respectively, a side opening and opposite end openings through which photographs may be slid into and out of the space between each said sleeve portion and said backing.
 2. An album page according to claim 1, said transparent sheet having a plurality of elongate portions thereof cut away therefrom, one of said cut-away portions being adjacent to and along a longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion to provide therealong an elongate exposed area of the surface of said backing receptive to pen or pencil markings.
 3. An album page according to claim 1, said transparent sheet having an elongate portion thereof cut away therefrom at and along, and at least coextensive with, said free length of said other longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion, so as to provide along the latter an elongate exposed area of the surface of said backing.
 4. An album page according to claim 3, each said cut-away portion spanning and extending beyond the ends of the side openings of the related sleeve portion.
 5. An album page according to claim 1, said backing having another transparent sheet of flexible film material overlying and adhered to the other face thereof, said other transparent sheet having in substantially the same manner as the aforesaid sheet pairs of slits therethrough and portions thereof united with said backing by seal means so as to form sleeve portions having side and opposite end openings as aforesaid, said seal means of the two transparent sheets being at common locations in the plane of said backing.
 6. An album page according to claim 1, said backing and said transparent sheet each being composed of a sheeted thermoplastic resin material and said seal means comprising seal lines along which said transparent sheet and said backing are fused together.
 7. An album page according to claim 1, further comprising holes formed through one of said side margins of said structure to receive fasteners for holding the page in an album.
 8. An album page comprising a flexible backing composed of a sheeted thermoplastic resin material and a transparent sheet of thermoplastic resin film material covering and adhered to each of the faces of said backing to form a laminar page structure, each said sheet having pairs of slits therethrough at locations spaced apart along one dimension of said structure, the slits of each of said pairs lying opposite each other at and along opposite side margins of said structure so as to define between such slits an elongate sleeve portion of the related transparent sheet, each said sleeve portion having a width greater than the height of photographs to be placed in the album page. seal means uniting with said backing the portions of each said sheet that occupy said side margins, one longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion and part of the other longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion, said seal means being seal lines along which said transparent sheets and said backing are fused together at common locations in the plane of said backing, a length of said other longitudinal border and the ends of each Said sleeve portion lying free of said backing so as to form, respectively, a side opening and opposite end openings through which photographs may be slid into and out of the space between each said sleeve portion and said backing, each said sheet having an elongate portion thereof cut away therefrom at and along said other longitudinal border of each said sleeve portion so as to provide along the latter an elongate exposed area of the surface of said backing that spans and extends beyond the ends of said side opening of the related sleeve portion, said exposed area being receptive to pen or pencil markings. 